I'm five feet* and proud of it. That's right. Five feet. Exactly.
For six years, I was the shortest and smallest faculty member at my campus. Now at my new campus, I'm almost the shortest, although I haven't exactly sized myself up with our financial aid officer to really tell. However, by visual comparison we are very, very close in height.
The average height for a woman in America is five feet, five inches according to Wiki. Incidentally, the average female height for a woman of Vietnamese descent (which I am) is exactly five feet! This means is that in America (where I live), anyone who's below five feet, five inches is immediately looked down upon. Well, in a physical way. Height also affects peoples' first impressions of me...until I open my mouth.
Take for example, the most common reply I got when I taught teenagers: "YOU teach high school?!" Followed by, "Don't they run all over you? Do you like it?" Or better yet, "You must get eaten alive!" Then they'd look at me sympathetically for being the small, fragile little teacher that's been released into a cage of savage, wild giant high school students.
Needless to say, my reply would be something like, "Yes, I teach high school." and "Yes, I LOVE it" and "What do you mean, eaten alive? I make football players cry!" ...not as a hobby, mind you. But when it came between a football game and not doing your assignment therefor failing the class (and thus, your academic future), you better believe I'd make 'em cry!
Bottom line is: Don't underestimate people shorter than you. As a colleague of mine used to say about me, "It's not about height. It's about the fact that you're one atomic giant when it came to getting things done. Woe to those that stand in your way!" I may be short, but that means I can take better aim at your ankles and knees.
My hapkido sensei used to say, "If someone shorter is about to attack you, run away! There's something very wrong with that picture."
Living at five feet does have it's...accommodations though. For example, I have a harder time finding things that are stored above my line of vision (above my head). Also, I live my life in the lab permanently attached to a ladder or a chair...or a plastic box that I pray won't capsize when I stand on top of it. I'm also hard to find when I'm stealthily hidden in a classroom with people who are taller than me. In come cases, I've been mistaken for a speed bump. The good thing is that I'm usually not the one that slows down! Muhuhahahaaa!
Advantages to being height challenged? People automatically underestimate you. -This is definitely a good thing because it means you can take them by surprise! As a woman, this means you NEVER have to worry about dating someone who's shorter than you. ...not that this is a concern for me anymore for me. :P Also, we eat less. So, if there's ever a food shortage, guess what? The short will survive to inherit the earth!
My conclusion? Burn your heels and walk proud, my vertically challenged brethren! The world is there for our taking!
*I write out the measurements AND units because, like most science-oriented people, I think in meters, millimeters and micrometers. (Another topic for a different time.)
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One thing I've definitely noticed about you, my friend, your experience in science and lesson-planning for rabid wolverines most call high school students (I should know, I've been one in the DMZ of high school life and was lucky not to get eaten by my 'peers') shows in your writing here! I've never one to judge by appearances...every so often I did, but that was long ago, before I realized how true the cliche 'Never judge a book by its cover' is. I'm between 5 feet eleven inches and 6 feet tall. That means no one looks up at or down upon me...I like that because it makes people guess about me!
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